Paper machinery



June23,1936. HA. KIDD 2,044,987

PAPER MACHINERY Filed Feb. l, 1934 Patented June 23, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PAPER MACHINERY corporation of Ohio Application February 1, 1934, Serial No. 709,340

10 Claims.

This invention relates to paper machinery and more particularly to machines for corrugating paperboard or the like.

One object of the invention is the provision of 5 a feeding means for' supplying a paper web to a corrugating roll, and adapted for variable friction engagement with the web to produce the proper web speed required by the corrugating roll.

Another object of the invention resides in the method of feeding a web of brous material to a corrugating roll by frictionally driving the web so as to tend to move the web at a speed slightly greater than the web speed required by the corrugating roll, and so controlling the friction drive pressure by the pull on the web produced by the corrugating roll as to obtain the desired web speed. A

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawing, in which,-

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine for corrugating paperboard, embodying 25 the present invention; and

Fig. 2 is a detail sectional view of one of the steam supplying devices of the machine.

Referring more particularly to the drawing by reference numerals, IIJ and I| designate a pair of cooperating corrugating rolls of a paperboard corrugating machine. These rolls are provided with intermeshing teeth which are adapted to produce the corrugations I2 in a web of fibrous material such as. a paperboard |3- which is supplied to one of the rolls I at a suitable distance from the zone of engagement of its teeth with the teeth of the cooperating roll II. positively driven by any suitable drive mechanism, the two rolls III and II operating in timed relationship by reason of their intermeshing teeth. In accordance with the usual construction of paperboard corrugating machines, a tank I4 for sodium silicate or the like is provided at a suitable location below the corrugating rolls, theadhesive being supplied to the outer portions or crests of the corrugations of the web on the roll by means of a rotatable pickup roll I5 which operates in contact with a supply govern'- ing and applying roll I6. The adhesive supplied to the corrugation crests serves as a binder between the corrugated web and a surface or liner web I'I which is supplied to it bythe` lguide and pressure roll I8.

The paperboard or weby I3 must be fed or supplied to the corrugating roll I0 at a speed which The roll II is' is approximately 50% greater than the lineal peripheral speed of that roll, inasmuch as the length of paper is very materially shortened as the corrugations are produced. The usual manner of supplying or feeding the paperboard to a corru- 5 gating roll is to employ a pair of rolls, one of which is positively driven, through which the 'board passes, the board being looped around a bodily movable dance roll the movements of which are arranged to cause a compensating correction in the speed of movement of the positively driven feeding rolls so as to maintain the tension on the web supplied to the corrugated rolls as accurately as possible. This type of drive, however, is usually such as to give a relatively high web tension and is also costly and rather intricate in construction. Furthermore, in such a type of drive there is a considerable time delay occurring following a, change in web tension before a proper correction in the speed of drivecan be produced.

In accordance with the present invention, however, a very simple friction drive is provided for automatically driving the paperboard at the exact lineal speed required by the corrugating rolls. Provided ahead of the corrugating roll Ill is a feed roll 2| around which the web is looped so that the web is in frictional driving contact with a considerable portion of its surface. A guide roll 22 is preferably provided between the rolls 30 2| and II), the roll 22, as shown, being yieldingly held by the springs 23 for limited bodily movement to prevent the web from flapping as it moves to the corrugating roll I0, and to provide for a substantial extent of surface contact between the roll 2| and the web. A second yielding supported roll 25 is provided between the feed roll 2| and the supply roll of paperboard 26 and serves the purpose of smoothing out any irregularities in the speed of rotation of the supply roll, and of smoothing out irregularities in the board itself such as tight and loose edges due to non-uniform winding, etc. 'Ihe web I3 may be wrapped or looped either over or under the feed roll 2|, the construction illustrated providing for surface engagement between the roll 2| and the upper side of the web.

The roll 2| is operated in timed relation with the corrugating rolls I0 and II, and is positively driven, as shown, for example, by a driving connection 28 which synchronizes the movement of the rolls 2| and II, the drive of the roll 2| being such'as to cause a peripheral speed somewhat greater than the speed of the web required by the corrugating rolls. For example if the paperboard must be supplied to the corrugating rolls at a speed of 300 feet per minute, the peripheral speed of the roll 2| is about 303 feet per minute. The roll 2| thus tends to drive or feed the web too fast for the requirements of the corrugating roll, but the construction is such that some slippage occurs between the surface of the roll 2| and the surface of the web in engagement therewith, this slippage being automatically controlled by the tension on the web produced by the pulling effect of the corrugating roll or rolls. The pull on the web created by the corrugating rolls holds the web I3 in engagement with the surface of the feeding roll, the springs 23 on the guide roll 22 being comparatively weak, so that when the tension in the web increases, the pressure between the web and the feed roll 2| increases, thus increasing the speed of the web slightly and automatically maintaining the tension in the web at a desired value. Conversely if the feed roll 2| should tend to supply the web at too fast a rate the tension in the web between the feed roll and the corrugating roll would decrease and this would automatically arid inslantly decrease the pressure between the web.

and the feed roll and. thus automatically and instantly decrease the feeding speed ofthe web. It will therefore be apparent that the web speed will always be maintained at the proper value required by the corrugating rolls, and moreover the tension in the web supplied to the corrugating rolls will also be maintained at a substantially constant value, the arrangement providing for a very considerable reduction in web tension over that required in the usual dance roll regulator.

The feed roll 2| is preferably provided quite close to the corrugating rolls to minimizethe length of the paper web between these two rolls, thus reducing the tendency of the web to ap and minimizing the amount of web tension required. However, there is suii'icient space between the feed roll and the corrugating rolls for the provision of steam supply means so that the web can be heated and moistened before it is supplied to the corrugating rolls. The web should be moist, and especially where a chestnut paperboard is employed, the steam should be driven into the body of the web. A steam jet construction such as is illustrated in Fig. 2 is therefore preferably employed for the supply of steam, the steam flowing from any suitable source to the pipe 30 from which it flows through a series of nozzles 3| which extend almost through the series of passages 32 provided in the fixed shoe 33 which has a curved surface over which the web curves. 'I'he steam is thus supplied from a point very close to the web from the end of the steam nozzle, the steam being directed toward the web and driven into the paperboard, thus moistening the inner portions of the board and producing a desirable condition so that the board can be softened preliminary to the corrugating operation. Similar steam supply means 35 is provided on'the upper side of the web. In addition to the heating and moistening effect produced by the steam jets above referred to, it is desirable to heat the roll 2| for preheating leffect on the web before corrugating, particularly when the corrugating operation is carried out at high speed and especially during the winter months when the board is brought in cold from storage.

'I he feeding means of the present invention is adaptable to paperboard of any type, but is especially desirable Where the paper board is comparatively weak. For example in chestnut board, which has the advantage of rigidity of the finished article, the fibers are shorter and the bond between the fibers is not as strong as in some other types of paperboard, but even so chestnut board may be very advantageously corrugated in accordance with the present invention as the tension in the web supplied to the corrugating rolls may be made very much less than the usual practice, and the tension in the web may be maintained substantially constant so that rupture of the web is avoided.

While the method herein described, and the form of apparatus for carrying thismethod into effect, constitute preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise method and form of apparatus, and that changes may be made in either without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a paper corrugating machine having rotatable means for corrugating a web of fibrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll for supplying the web to the rotatable corrugating means and adapted for frictional driving engagement with the web, and drive means for operating said roll at a peripheral speed in excess of the speed of the web required by the corrugating means.

2. In a corrugating machine having rotatable means for corrugating a web of fibrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll adapted for 35 frictional surface engagement with the web for supplying the web to the rotatable corrugating means, and drive means for operating said roll in fixed timed relation with the operation of the corrugating means but at a peripheral roll speed slightly exceeding the speed of the web required by the corrugating means.

3. In a corrugating machine having rotatable means for corrugating a web of fibrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll adapted for surface engagement with the web for supplying the web to the rotatable corrugating means, drive means for rotating said roll in timed relation with the operation of the corrugating means and at a peripheral speed exceeding the speed of the web required by the corrugating means, and means for guiding the web for surface contact with a substantial extent of the peripheral surface of said feeding roll.

4. In a corrugating machine having rotatable means for corrugating a web of fibrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll adapted for frictional engagement and arcuate contact with one side of the web, said roll having such posi.

tion with respect to the corrugating means that 60 of the speed of the web required by the corru- 65 gating means.

5. In combination, cooperating rotatable toothed corrugating rolls adapted to corrugate a. web of brous material, a web feeding roll provided ahead of said corrugating rolls and adapted for 70 frictional surface engagement with one side of the web through a substantial arc of contact, and drive means coordinating the speed of operation of said feeding roll and corrugating rolls for operating said feeding roll at a, peripheral speed in 75 excess of the speed of the web required by the corrugating rolls, said feeding roll having such relationship to the corrugating rolls that the latter pull the web against the feeding roll.

6. The method of feeding a web f brous material to a corrugating means comprising frictionally driving the web so as to tend to move the web at a speed slightly greater than the speed of movement required by the corrugating means, and controlling the frictionaldrive pressure by the pull on the web produced by the corrugating means to obtain the required feeding speed of the web.

7. In a corrugating machine having rotatablemeans for corrugating a web of fibrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll adapted for frictional surface engagement with the web throughout a substantial arcuate contact therewith for supplying the web to the rotatable corrugating means, drive means for operating said roll in fixed time relation With the operation of the corrugating means but at a peripheral speed slightly exceeding the average speed of the web required by the corrugating means, and yielding means engaging the web between the feeding roll and the corrugatingmeans.

8. In a corrugating machine having rotatable means for corrugatinga web ofbrous material supplied thereto, a web feeding roll adapted for frictional surface engagement with the web throughout a substantial arcuate contact therewith for supplying the web to the rotatable corrugating means, drive means for operating said roll in fixed time relation with the operation of the corrugating means but at a peripheral speed slightly exceeding the average speed of the web required bythe corrugating means, a dance roll 5 engaging the web between the feeding roll and the corrugating means, and a dance roll engaging the web ahead of the feeding roll.

9. In a machine having-operating means for operating on a paper web and pulling on the web 10 so as to produce rapid variations in the speed of advance of the web, feeding means for advancing the web comprising a feeding roll having a substantial length of arcuate contact with the web and adapted to apply amoving force to the web 15 which, alone, is not quite suflicient to advance the web, and means for rotating said roll in timed relation to the operating means but at a peripheral speed substantially greater than the average speed of the web required by the operating means. 20

10. In a machine having operating means for operating on a paper web and pulling on the web so as to produce rapid variations in the speed of advance of the web, feeding means for advancing the web comprising a feeding roll having a sub- 25 stantial length of arcuate contact with the'web and adapted to apply a moving force to the web which, alone, is not quite suiiicient to advance the web, and a dance roll engaging the web between the feeding roll and the operating means. 30

HERBERT A. KIDD. 

